This crocodile needlefish swam up to check me out one day when I was snorkeling. These are large fish and sometimes, when I see them, I mistake them for great barracudas. A somewhat disturbing fact about crocodile needlefish is that, if they become alarmed, particularly at night, they can turn on whoever has frightened them and drive their beak into that person. The wounds inflicted can be very serious and deaths have been recorded. Mostly though, when I’m snorkeling, they just cruise by and take a non-threatening look.
Saddle wrasses are one of those fish where the juvenile looks nothing like the adult. The top photo shows an adult supermale. The second one shows the very different look of a juvenile. These differences are one of the challenges of identifying fish. My fish book offers a wide variety of photos, but it can require careful attention to identify what I’ve captured with my camera.
Tahitian prawns were introduced to Hawaii back in the 1950s and are now found on all the islands thanks, in part, to the fact that their life cycle includes a stage in the open ocean. The prawns have become a popular food here though, as with most introduced species, there’s a downside. They prey on native species in the streams they inhabit.
One such stream runs through Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, which is where I saw these Tahitian prawns. This stream is also one of several on the island where the prawns have been virtually wiped out on occasion. That’s because, while it’s legal to catch these prawns, it’s not legal to do so by dumping insecticide in the stream. Not only does this kill all the prawns, but it wipes out pretty much everything else that’s alive in there. And then there’s the small matter that these prawns are harvested for human consumption. Would you like insecticide with that?
Catching people in the act has proved difficult, but last year authorities did apprehend one man who had killed 6,200 prawns using this method. Earlier this year, he was fined $633,840 for his actions and the hope is that the big fine will discourage others. Mind you, the perpetrator looked like someone who would have trouble raising $840, let alone the other $633,000.
This is the first time I’ve seen signs like this one at Spencer Beach Park. I didn’t see any jellyfish on the beach so perhaps the signs were a warning for those getting in the water. There are often jellyfish in the water, but not in such numbers as to be a problem.
This park is popular with families with small kids so perhaps the authorities were being extra cautious with the signs.
My most recent manta ray encounter happened a few days ago. I was swimming along and saw a familiar shape in front of me. It was a manta ray heading in the same direction. I tracked it for a while, hoping to catch up, but knowing that doing so was entirely up to the manta. Eventually I did draw level for a short while. Then the manta pulled away again.
As it disappeared, I thought at first I was seeing some kind of weird reflection in the water. Then I realized it was a second manta swimming toward me. As it approached the first manta turned and followed behind. Both were pretty large and up near the water’s surface, creating reflections.
They passed by, and receded in the direction I’d come from. I hung around for a while hoping they’d reverse course again and, sure enough, a few moments later the two of them came back toward me. On this pass, I could see that one had a badly damaged cephalic flap. It looked like an old wound and didn’t seem to trouble the manta much, but I don’t know how it would affect it when it came to feeding since they use the flaps to funnel plankton into their mouths.
Eventually, the mantas headed away and out into deeper water. I stayed out for a while on the off chance that they’d return, but wasn’t surprised when they didn’t. Still, it had been another wonderful encounter and I headed back toward shore in a very good mood.
I had just jumped in the water and submerged my head when I saw something move. The fish immediately plopped down by a rock but I’d already recognized the distinctive shape of a devil scorpionfish. I hung around for a short while hoping it would spread its pectoral fins in its distinctive display, but it never did. The second photo, which has run on the blog before, shows what I was looking for.
A couple of days ago, I was snorkeling when I saw this enormous fish. I snapped a quick photo, fearful that the fish would quickly disappear. But it stuck around for a minute or two, passing back and forth in front of me, before sliding away into deeper water.
I knew it was a jack, but not one I’d seen before. When I got home, I dove into my fish book and figured out this was a giant trevally. According to my fish book, the giant trevally is the largest of the jack family. The biggest recorded catch is one that weighed 191 pounds. That would be heavier than me! That’s a tad worrisome because my fish book also notes that these curious and fearless fish ‘have been known to grab and rip away divers’ bright snorkel tips and colorful fins.’
This one was smaller than that, probably somewhere between three and four feet long, but comfortably the largest jack I’ve ever seen and probably the largest fish I’ve seen of any kind other than rays and sharks.
My fish book notes that the large-spotted snake moray eel can be encountered both day and night, but is not often seen. That’s true in my experience. This is only the second one I’ve seen here and the first I’ve photographed.
Graham's Island 